Vigo, Santiago de Compostela – November 6, 2012
I had decided to take the ship bus to Santiago de
Compostela, but not the ship tour. I
did not want a tour, but simply a bus ride.
I wanted to see the cathedral and the town on my own, a I usually do,
and it turned out that I made the right choice.
The geography of the Vigo region is very pretty – deep green
rolling hills – and the freeway to Santiago de Compostela is new and
smooth. The one-hour drive was very
pretty. The bus arrived in Santiago
just before noon, and the cathedral was closed for noon mass until 1:00 p.m.,
so I decided to go for a walk in the town.
The tour guide on the bus had suggested a place in a nearby park where I
could get a nice view and photo of the cathedral, so I headed there first. She was right, the view was great. I then walked through the old town taking
photos of some of the historical buildings as well as a small demonstration. I found the local market with its fruit and
vegetable stalls, as well as the fish and meat stalls. Markets are always interesting for photos,
and I enjoyed taking photos there.
As I was wandering around in the old town, I came to an
interesting building that seems to have been one of the buildings of the
university; it was historical, but it was in use and many college-age kids were
entering and exiting the building. Just
across the little plaza was another interesting old building, and when I
entered, I was surprised to find that I was inside the cathedral. I was surprised again by the cathedral; it
was very dark and not nearly as ornate as many other cathedrals. Although the altar was gold, there were no
mosaics or murals. It was simply large,
dark and plain.
After exiting the cathedral, I continued walking in the town
taking photos of other historical buildings until time to reboard the bus back
to the ship.
The only negative of the day was the bus driver, who drove
in a dangerous manner. He drove so fast
that he passed other busses that had left earlier – both going to Santiago and
returning. And he also weaved from lane
to lane and jerked the bus quickly at times.
When I returned to the ship, I reported him to the tour office.
My lasting impression of Santiago de Compostela is that I
don’t understand why there is a pilgrimage there. Not being Catholic, I do not understand many of the beliefs of
the Catholic faith; for example, I cannot understand how people can believe
that ancient bodies of saints can suddenly be discovered, as St. James’ body is
believed to have been, and then worshiped.
Nevertheless, I find all religions and worship practices to be
interesting. Most of all, I find it
interesting that the knowledge and ability to construct massive cathedrals
existed so long ago.
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